Author Archive

Today’s AJ Cousin Connection is legendary crooner Frank Sinatra!

Born December 12, 1915, Frank Sinatra was a singer, actor, director, film producer and conductor, well known for songs such as “Fly Me to the Moon”, “The Lady is a Tramp” and “My Way”.

Some fun Frank facts:

1. His birth was a traumatic one – he was yanked out his mother with forceps and was blue and not breathing!   They thought he was dead and laid him on the kitchen counter while tending to his mother.  His grandmother picked him up, put him under some cold water and “little Frank wailed out his first song”. [1]

2. Frank’s cocktail of choice:  a mix of four ice cubes, two fingers of Jack Daniel’s whiskey, and a splash of water.  He once said, “This is a gentlemen’s drink.”

3. Sinatra was married 4 times – Nancy Barbato, Ava Gardner, Mia Farrow and Barbara Marx. 

4. He preferred athletics to academics participated in a variety of sports, including boxing.

5.  Not just a great singer, he won an Academy Award for his non-singing performance in From Here to Eternity (1953).

6. In total, he received 9 Grammy Awards, 3 Academy Awards, a Presidential Medal of Freedom, and a Congressional Gold Medal. 

7. Frank was a dedicated supporter of Democratic Party until the early 1970s when he switched to become a Republican. He supported Ronald Reagan in the 1980 Presidential Elections and donated $4 million to Reagan’s campaign.

8. Elton John stated that Sinatra, “was simply the best – no one else even comes close”. [2]

Frank Sinatra is A.J. Jacobs’ first cousin thrice removed’s wife’s second cousin once removed’s ex-husband’s wife’s ex-husband’s ex-wife’s ex-husband.

Here’s what that looks like:

Sources:

1. https://mentalfloss.com/article/29962/11-little-known-facts-about-frank-sinatra
2. https://nobert-bermosa.blogspot.com/2011/09/60-entertaining-and-interesting-facts.html

by Abby Glann

Hi Cousins!

As you are going along entering your family in one of the fantastic collaborative genealogy sites we talked about last week, an important thing to include are dates. This may seem obvious to some but not so much to others.They make a huge difference when trying to connect with others, because they can help you see whether someone is even remotely a close match with your own ancestors.

But, what if you don’t know a date for someone? A death, birth, christening, high school graduation, or marriage date can all help you get a timeline for someone. Some sites require a death or birth date to help their searches. How would you figure out a good estimate? If you have a death or birth date, you’re set. If you have graduation dates then you can estimate they were born 17-20 years earlier. First marriages tend to happen in your early to mid twenties.  If you know when one of their children were born, you can generally estimate that they parents were born 25-30 years earlier.  Keep in mind, these are all estimations, and can be changed later if you find records to give you a better idea or exact dates for a birth date. They can be the the one thing that saves you from accidentally merging Joe Jones born circa 1800 married to Sue Brown with Joe Jones born 1940 married to Sue Brown. Make the best you can-it really makes a difference!

by Eowyn Langholf

Today’s AJ Cousin Connection is baseball great, Joe DiMaggio.

Born Giuseppe Paolo DiMaggio, Joe earned the nicknames “Joltin’ Joe” and “The Yankee Clipper”.  Joe played his entire 13 year career for the New York Yankees.  He is best known and still holds the record for his 56 game hitting streak!

Joe was a three time MVP winner and an All-Star in every one of his 13 seasons.  He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1955.

Some fun facts:

1. His rookie salary was $8500, but it went to $15,000 the next year.

2.  Joe’s rookie year was one of the best in baseball history – .323/29/125 and he led the league with 15 triples.

3. Joe was the first $100,000 salary player.

4. He was married to Marilyn Monroe!

5.  He helped establish coffee makers as standard in American homes.

6. Joe said, ““I want to thank the good Lord for making me a Yankee.”

7. He was voted “Greatest Living Player” in a 1969 centennial of pro baseball poll.

AJ Jacobs and Joe DiMaggio have 27 degrees of separation. Here’s what that looks like:

Sources

1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_dimaggio
2. https://www.joedimaggio.com/2013/05/15/56-things-to-know-about-joe-dimaggio/

by Eowyn Langholf

Today’s AJ Cousin Connection is the well known weather anchor from Today – Mr. Al Roker! I predict 100% chance of cousin connecting!

Here are seven things you may or may not know about Al:

1. Al does not like coconut.

2. He doesn’t go to horror movies.

3. Al likes pie. He hates running. He runs so he can eat pie.

4. Al and Lenny Kravitz are cousins (Bonus connection!)

5. He’s the oldest of 6 kids.

6. Al hates it when he holds the door open for someone and they don’t say “thank you”.

7. He would give up half of his possessions to find the portal to ToonTown!

Al Roker is A.J. Jacobs’ first cousin thrice removed’s husband’s nephew’s wife’s brother’s wife’s nephew’s wife’s great niece’s ex-husband’s first cousin once removed. 

Sources:

1. https://www.usmagazine.com/entertainment/news/25-things-you-dont-know-about-me-al-roker-2011296

Post by Eowyn Langholf
 
Today’s AJ Cousin Connection is Austrian neurologist and founding father of psychoanalysis, Sigmund Freud. 

Some interesting things about Dr. Freud:

1. Freud was an avid smoker, first of cigarettes, and then he switched entirely to cigars.  By 1923, he had developed cancer of the jaw. Physically sick and tired, Freud committed suicide with the help of his doctor and his daughter Anna, just 22 days after the beginning of the World War II. He injected himself with a two-centigram dose of morphine.  This threw him into a coma from which he never awakened.

2. Freud considered himself an atheist and who thought God and religion were illusions that blinded the masses, but interestingly was extremely superstitious. He saw magical properties in numbers. He often claimed that the numbers 23 and 28 appeared in dates, telephone numbers and hotel reservations throughout his life. He even predicted that he would die at 51, the result of adding 23 and 28. He was wrong about that though and died at the age of 83.

3. Sigmund Freud was a brilliant man. Not only had he graduated from medical school and become a neurologist by the time he was 30, he also spoke and/or read eight languages: German, Hebrew, Latin, Greek, French, English, Spanish and Italian.

4. He said “Words have a magical power. They can bring either the greatest happiness or deepest despair; they can transfer knowledge from teacher to student; words enable the orator to sway his audience and dictate its decisions. Words are capable of arousing the strongest emotions and prompting all men’s actions.”

5.  He also said “The great question that has never been answered, and which I have not yet been able to answer, despite my thirty years of research into the feminine soul, is “What does a woman want?””

AJ Jacobs and Sigmund Freud have 23 degrees of separation.  Here’s what that looks like: 

 Sources:

1. https://random-facts.top5.com/5-things-you-never-knew-about-sigmund-freud/ 
2. https://www.themost10.com/engrossing-sigmund-freud-quotes/

by Eowyn Langholf

Today’s AJ Cousin Connection is actor Patrick Swayze, who was born on this day, August 18, in 1952, and is perhaps best known for his roles in Dirty Dancing and Ghost.

Fun Facts About Patrick:

1. His first professional appearance was as a dancer. He played “Prince Charming” in “Disney on Parade”.

2. He received a Razzie Award for the Worst Actor for two movies: Road House and Next of Kin.

3. Patrick was known for saying “Good-looking people turn me off. Myself included.”

4. Ghost inserted him into modern hip-hop lyrics where the phrase “I’m Swayze” (means “I’m ghost,” which is in turn slang for “I’m leaving”).

5. Patrick became known in Hollywood as the King of Sleepers because two of his most successful movies – Dirty Dancing and Ghost – were both initially not expected to be big movies but eventually went on to become classics.

6. While still in grade school, Swayze developed a love for ballet and was often teased by fellow classmates. Throughout high school, he set aside his dance career to concentrate on athletics — juggling gymnastics, swimming, and football.

Patrick Swayze is A.J. Jacobs’ aunt’s 6th great aunt’s husband’s aunt’s husband’s niece’s husband’s 6th great nephew. 

Here’s what that looks like:

Sources:

1. https://www.channel24.co.za/Movies/Features/Patrick-Swayze-24-Facts-20090915 
2. https://www.biography.com/people/patrick-swayze-9542318#aspiring-dancer

by Eowyn Langholf

Hi Cousins!  I’d love to introduce you to cousin Matt.  He was nice enough to be my first victim volunteer to answer some questions so the world could get to know him a little better.   Without further ado, meet Matt:

Me: You’re 15.  When did you first get into researching your family history and what sparked your interest?

Matt:  As far as I can remember, I’ve always been into family history.  My earliest memory of it though is talking to my paternal grandfather about his maternal grandfather, Lee Ward Lindow.  I wouldn’t ask him questions, I would overhear things and write them down on random sheets of paper I had and I put them all in a black binder.  Even now I refer to that black binder and every time I look in there I see something I wrote down as a five year old which puts my puzzle pieces together even today!!!

Me: You have some big goals for your future!  Tell us about some of them.

Matt: Well, after high school, I’d like to go Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia, majoring in Law and Theology, and minoring in Political Science.  I’d love to move to Kitty Hawk, NC and start my own law firm and my own church, and a genealogy firm on the side.  I’d love to coordinate a family reunion from the descendants of my maternal great-grandfather one day!

Me: Share with us an interesting story you’ve discovered about one of your ancestors.

Matt: My paternal great-great grandfather who I mentioned before was Lee W. Lindow.  His grandfather was a veteran of the United States Civil War named Frederick J. Lindow.  Frederick settled in North Collins, New York and built a lumber mill industry that was worth millions of dollars – in the 1930s, 40s, 50s, and 60s.  Later after Fred’s death, Lee’s uncle Raymond inherited the lumber mill but sold it before his death in 1969.  When he passed away, he must have given Lee’s sister Florence some of the money because when she died, also in the 1960s, she left a huge donation worth millions to a local church.  

Me: Do you have a favorite ancestor? Who? Why?

Matt: My absolute favorite ancestor would have to be Charles W. Goodier, Sr., my maternal great grandfather.  He passed away in November of 2013 after a battle of Alzheimer’s, so I never really got a chance to talk with him.  But after his death I learned about what an amazing life he had.  He served our country in the Air Force and in the process met the Queen Mother and married a model from Ohio, my great grandma Rita, who passed in 1976.  After his service, he became Mayor of Blasdell, New York, a small 1,000 person village outside of Buffalo and served one term, but he stayed very active in Village politics.  He has currently as of August 2014 157 descendants. 

John D. Rockefeller, Sr. (Image Credit: Wikipedia)

Me: If you could be related to anyone in history, who would you want it to be and why?

Matt: If I could be related to anyone in history, I would want to be related to John D. Rockefeller, Sr.  My reasoning for this is because he was a self made man who founded a dynasty of brilliant minded men who went on to become elected Government officials all over the country.  John Sr. lived my dream life!!!

Me: What are your thoughts about the Global Family Reunion?  Will you be attending?

Matt: I think AJ Jacobs is brilliant by coming up with this idea for a Global Family Reunion.  I think everyone is related, and if I had my way, the entire population of Earth would there!!! I will not be able to attend, BUT I plan on watching it live on your “Live Stream” option.

Me:  Do you come from a big family? Small family?   Do you guys have family reunions and do you have any good family reunion stories?

Matt: My paternal family is very small, and it’s like a reunion every holiday!!! There’s usually 7 of us. My paternal grandpa has many first cousins but he never really got the chance to actually meet them.  I have contacted one of them and according to her information, there are a lot more of my paternal family out there than I thought there was!!! On the other hand, my maternal family is gigantic.  My grandma has 47 first cousins, my mom has 39, and I have 25.  The numbers of first cousins are high like that all the way back until the 1600’s!!!  Most of those cousins had 1-10 kids.  That means there’s a lot of relatives out there!!!  Now, the descendants of my maternal great-great grandparents had one family reunion in Cincinnati but I did not go.  Even if I did, I would have been too young to remember. 

Me: Where have you found your ancestors come from?  Would you want to visit the lands they hail from?

Matt:On both sides of my family, my great grandpas’ families come from England and my great grandmas’ families come from Germany.  On my maternal side, in Sale, England, there is a road called Goodier Street after my great-great grandfather, Joseph Goodier, and I’d love to go there and see it!!!

Me: What sort of activities do you participate in at your school?

Matt: In school I stick to more academic extra curricular activities.  I’m the Vice President of the Class of 2017 and I am involved in numerous history related activities.  I’m looking I join the golf team this year…

Me: Favorite color? Favorite food? Left-handed or right-handed? Do you like to have breakfast for dinner? Favorite book? Movie? TV show? Song/band?

Matt: I’ve always liked the color blue, it’s like the only color I ever wear!!!  I’m right handed and I never really got into TV.  I’m one of those kids that read an encyclopedia and if I do watch TV I watch the History Channel or C-SPAN.  I really like classical orchestra / piano music.  I’m a pianist myself!

Me: Do you have any funny quirks that you’ve inherited from your family?

Matt:  Everyone in my family has a certain laugh.  It’s really hard to explain but it’s on my dad’s side. It follows us everywhere!!!

Me: If you could share one message with your 7 billion cousins what would it be?

Matt: My message to my 7 billion cousins would be that Adam and Eve started us out and that we should take time to get to know people better starting with the family that we know, such as first cousins or your siblings.  Treat everyone with severe kindness, because you don’t want your family to have a bad opinion of you! Always stay happy.

AJ and Matt connect through Henry Cook, Matt’s 12 great grandfather and one of the first settlers of Connecticut. 

(If you would like to be featured in an “I Am A Cousin” post please contact me at gfrcousincoordinator@gmail.com!) 

by Eowyn Langholf
 
Today’s AJ Cousin Connection is Napoleon Bonaparte, the French military and political leader who rose to prominence during the latter part of the French Revolution.

Here are some fun facts about Napoleon:

1. Often credited with originating the phrase “a picture is worth 1,000 words,” what Napoleon actually said was “A good sketch is better than a long speech.”

2. The former Emperor is still very much revered – it is illegal for anyone in France to name a pig “Napoleon”.

3. Napoleon enjoyed disguising as a bourgeois or wearing poor clothes to walk Paris, asking questions to people. This way, he could know how popular he was, and how people felt about him, and his policies. He actually had a lot of fun doing that.

4. It is said that he only slept minutes while he was in campaign. Usually he would take naps of between 5 and 10 minutes and wake up fully refreshed for battle.

5. Napoleon loved hats. During his reign, he bore 170 unique hats. 

6. He was deathly afraid of cats! 

A.J. Jacobs and Napoleon Bonaparte have 19 degrees of separation. 

Here’s what that looks like: 

Sources:

1. https://www.readersdigest.com.au/15-facts-napoleon-bonaparte
2. https://www.discoverwalks.com/blog/top-5-fun-facts-about-napoleon/ 
3. https://historymayto.blogspot.com/2013/01/10-fun-facts-about-napoleon.html
 4. https://www.factspedia.org/history-facts/interesting-facts-about-napoleon-bonaparte/

Post by Abby Glann

 by Eowyn Langholf

Today’s Cousin Connection is Storm!  Okay, not exactly, but it is the lovely Halle Berry. 

Fun Facts About Halle:

1. She was originally named Maria Halle Berry but her parents changed her name to Halle Maria Berry when she was five years old.

2. Before becoming an actress, Halle participated in numerous beauty pageants and was even 1st runner-up in the Miss USA Pageant in 1986.

3. Her favorite actresses are Dorothy Dandridge, Jodie Foster and Whoopi Goldberg.

4. Halle’s dress for the 2002 Oscars ceremony was voted the most popular outfit from the first 75 years.

5. In high school, she was an honor society member, editor of the school paper, and class president. Halle was also crowned prom queen.

Here’s what that looks like:

 Sources:

1. https://factspage.blogspot.com/2010/01/18-interesting-facts-about-halle-berry.html
2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halle_Berry
3. https://pop-culture.net/H/Halle-Berry.html
4. https://www.ndtv.com/photos/lifestyle/10-facts-you-didn-t-know-about-halle-berry-15738/slide/5
5. https://www.boomsbeat.com/articles/664/20140225/50-things-you-probably-didn-t-know-about-halle-berry.htm